


two paper airplanes flying

by ginnyweasleys



Category: The 100 (TV)
Genre: College AU, F/M, Neighbors AU, minor finn/raven, mostly fighting because...he cheated on her..., probably too much self-indulgent shirtless bellamy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-02-03
Updated: 2015-02-03
Packaged: 2018-03-10 07:51:01
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,568
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3282620
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ginnyweasleys/pseuds/ginnyweasleys
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>University is an accumulation of events for Raven Reyes: blowing things up, fighting with her boyfriend, and dealing with Bellamy Blake and his strange aversion to shirts.</p>
            </blockquote>





	two paper airplanes flying

**Author's Note:**

> college au (the prompt was neighbors au but oh well); there's nothing graphic but i feel i should warn for sexual content and nudity? mostly these two are just dumb and this majorly got away from me whoops. i realize i have already used this song for a fic recently but...just go with it, okay? i love this song.

** two paper airplanes flying **

the rest of the world was black and white  
but we were in screaming color  
and i remember thinking  
are we out of the woods yet?

-  _taylor swift, out of the woods_

* * *

There are precious few things Raven Reyes knows about her next-door neighbor, and one of them is his name. Bellamy Blake is as private as a person can get living in an apartment building comprised mostly of college students with a penchant for partying – another one of the few things she knows about him. Also, he has a sister, because the girl who visits him from time to time looks both related and far too out of his league to be a girlfriend, and he’s a classics major at their university. 

That’s about it, though. She hasn’t really interested herself in anything else, primarily because being an engineering major takes up enough of her time that she doesn’t want to waste any wondering why mister tall dark and handsome next door is so reclusive; mostly she was just glad he didn’t throw any raging parties while she was trying to study. 

Then he shows up half-naked on her doorstep one evening and she has to reevaluate all her priorities. 

“Hey,” he says, having the grace to look a little sheepish. “My shower kinda stopped working. Is there any chance I could use yours?” 

Raven blinks up at him. It takes her a minute to notice the towel around his waist and the change of clothes and shower bag he’s carrying. Most of her attention had been elsewhere. He had _really_ nice abs, in her defense. 

“Um,” she says eloquently. “Do you…what?” 

A grin quirks his lips. “It’ll only take two minutes, I promise. I’ll be out of your hair in no time.” 

Almost subconsciously, she reaches up to tug on her ponytail. “Sure, sure. Just...don’t use all the hot water.” 

Bellamy snorts and moves past her doorway and into her apartment. “Two minutes,” he says over his shoulder as he steps into her bathroom – it’s a tiny apartment, so the bathroom is pretty much five feet away from her bed. She finds herself tracking his movements despite telling herself not to. He doesn’t seem to notice her gaze on his bare back as he reaches to undo his towel. 

She isn’t watching, of course. That would just…he has a really nice ass, it’s not her fault. 

* * *

The second time she really talks to him is when she knocks on his door and he opens it – sans shirt, which, really, she should have expected, just judging from the giant cosmic joke that is her life. 

“Can I help you?” he asks, looking bemused. 

Raven smiles apologetically and lifts up her hand to show him the first-degree burn on her palm. “You wouldn’t happen to have a first-aid kit or something, would you?” 

Bellamy stares at her. “You’re an engineering major and you don’t have a first-aid kit?” 

“Oh, come on, we’ve been at this school for three years and this is the first time I’ve had to ask someone for help, so I think I have a pretty good record!” she says defensively. “Can you help or not?” 

“I might have something,” he says dryly, opening the door wider to let her in. “Take it to the sink, hold it under cool water – not ice cold.” 

“You seem far more informed on treating burns than I was expecting,” she notes, walking over to the sink and watching him sidelong as he rustles through some drawers. “Didn’t think classics majors had to worry about that. Get a lot of papercuts or something?” 

Bellamy laughs, the sound deep and unexpectedly nice. “My little sister is a walking talking fire hazard,” he informs her, heading to the sink and holding up a bottle of aloe vera lotion. “She left this here last time she burned herself, so you got lucky, I suppose. Here, give me your hand.” 

“I can apply lotion to myself,” she protests, but he’s already taking her hand and gently applying a layer of lotion to it, coating the burned area more effectively than she probably could. His hand feels nice, holding up her palm with his own, his skin refreshingly cool to the touch. She tries not to notice, but it’s hard when he’s touching her _and_ shirtless all at the same time. 

“There, it should be better now,” he says, pulling back and shooting her a grin. “Any other problems, firestarter?” 

Raven rolls her eyes, though the nickname is ridiculously cute, coming from him. “Yeah, do you happen to own a shirt?” 

Bellamy grins. “If you want me to,” he teases. 

Raven muffles a laugh, then holds up her other hand. “By the way… I did say first-aid kit, right?” 

Bellamy blinks. “You – seriously?” 

“It was kind of a big explosion,” she says apologetically. Bellamy sighs and goes to get his first-aid kit. 

* * *

After that, she stops keeping track of how many times she runs into him in their building, but one of the later times is right after her worst – and last, hopefully – fight with Finn. It ends with a confession of cheating, quite a few harsh words she doesn’t much think she’ll regret, and him practically running away as she slams the door after him before curling up on the floor of her apartment to cry. 

Bellamy finds her like that – apparently, she’d forgotten to lock the door after Finn left. Swiping at her tears, she fixes the best version of her glower she can possibly muster up on him. 

“What do you _want_ , Blake?” she demands, and he raises an eyebrow at the words, or maybe at the usage of his last name, she doesn’t know; it’s hard to care what anyone thinks when the boy she’d loved for years just told her he’d gone and slept with some other girl – 

“Are you okay?” Bellamy asks, sinking down besides her. “You – was that – Raven, what happened?” 

“I’m fine, and it’s none of your business,” she mutters, but she doesn’t pull away when he touches her arm, though part of her thinks she ought to. “You don’t have to be here.” 

“I know that,” he says, frowning slightly, and she can’t think of anything else to say to that, and he doesn’t offer. For a moment they just sit in silence, backs against the wall, her room in a state of disorganized chaos spread out before them. She wants to laugh at how ridiculous this is. 

“Look,” he manages after a while, “I know I’m – I’m probably not the person you want here for this. And we’re not friends but I – ” 

“I want sex,” she says suddenly, staring at her bed and feeling him go still beside her. The words seem to become more true as they ring in the silence, though she’d really only just wanted to make him shut up. 

“You – you want – ” 

Raven turns her head sideways to take in his bemused expression. “You’re right. We’re not friends. In fact, this is one of the few times I’m seeing you with a shirt on. Let’s have sex.” 

“I – ” Bellamy begins, and then is promptly sidetracked by her taking off her shirt. “ _Raven_ – ” 

“I’m not making pretenses here, Bellamy,” she sighs. He swallows. “It’s comfort sex, right? No strings attached. You don’t have to worry about me being clingy or whatever – ” 

“That’s not what I’m worried about,” he says, but she cuts him off by kissing him and he seems to entirely forget what he was going to say, because the next thing that comes out of his mouth is a low moan against her throat, and she’s unbuttoning his shirt, and he tastes like cigarette smoke and it’s such a far cry from everything she’d ever had with Finn that she wants to laugh, or maybe cry. 

Instead she kisses him again, and his hands are warm enough on her body, his lips hot enough on her skin, that she almost forgets about Finn entirely. Almost. 

* * *

“Did that help?” he asks her quietly in the light of the morning, still lying in her bed as she’s putting on her clothes. She doesn’t have to turn around to know the way he’s looking at her, to know he’s remember all the things they did the night before. 

“No,” she says, because almost isn’t enough. He doesn’t say anything else, just watches her get dressed and leave. 

* * *

The next time she runs into him is two weeks later at the doorway of an elevator that opens up to reveal him and Finn standing behind it, the tension thick enough to cut through. Her eyes widen and she contemplates running for an instant too long – they’ve both already noticed her standing there. 

“Raven,” Bellamy mutters in greeting and brushes past her. She watches him go, her insides turning to lead, and then turns back to narrow her eyes at Finn. 

“What the _fuck_ are you doing, Finn?” she demands, marching into the elevator and hitting the button for the lobby. The elevator starts moving up towards Finn’s floor first. “What did you say to him?” 

“Nothing!” Finn says defensively. “I just – I didn’t say – Raven, did you _sleep_ with him?” 

The look on her face is probably answer enough for him. “Did he tell you that?” 

“No, people are talking,” he says, frowning at her. As if _he_ gets to judge her. “I asked him about it and – ” 

“Why on _Earth_ would you _ask him_ about it, Finn?” Raven explodes. “What did you think was going to happen?! How is this any of your business, anyway?” 

He coughs. “It’s not – I just – Raven, I care about you. I know you don’t – look, I know – I know it was my fault. But I still love you, and I worry about you.” 

“You still love me?” she repeats in disbelief. The elevator dings and the door opens, but he doesn’t get out. “Not enough to _not cheat on me_ , though.” 

“It was a mistake!” he sighs, rubbing his neck. “Look, I just – I don’t expect you to forgive me. I just wanted to apologize. And, okay, I know it’s not my place but – Bellamy Blake is not – why are you even – ” 

“Oh, no, please, Finn,” Raven says, her voice soured with acid, “tell me why I should stay away from Bellamy Blake. Is he a murderer? Is he in the mafia? Is he going to tell me he loves me then go sleep with the nearest blonde – ” 

The elevator doors close. Finn gapes at her. “I – I just – I didn’t think he was your type,” he says quietly. 

“Well, clearly, my type _sucks_ anyway,” she snaps at him, and the rest of the elevator ride is spent in uncomfortable silence. 

* * *

Later that evening when she comes back home, she knocks on Bellamy’s door and it’s opened by a pretty brunette girl a few years younger than her – it takes her a moment to remember this is his sister and not some random girlfriend. Bellamy himself is nowhere in sight behind her. 

“Oh, hi!” says the girl – Octavia, a distant part of her brain supplies helpfully. “Did you need to see Bellamy? He was just taking a shower, but you can come on in. Raven, right?” 

“Um, yeah, Raven,” she says, a bit caught off-guard by her peppiness. “You’re Octavia?” 

“The one and only,” Octavia laughs, shouldering her book bag. “I was just leaving. I only came by to drop off some food our grandma cooked for him. It was nice meeting you, though. I’ve been wondering what you looked like, with all the times he’s talked about you.” 

Raven blinks at her. “He talks about me?” 

Octavia laughs. “Only all the time. Don’t tell him I told you this, but you must be really good at sex, because he wouldn’t shut up about you for, like, a week after that happened.” 

Raven hasn’t yet figured out how to process this statement before Octavia is wishing her a cheerful goodbye and sauntering out the door, and she has even less figured out what to do about the butterflies bubbling inside her by the time Bellamy opens his bathroom door and walks out in a towel to see her sitting on his bed. 

In its own way, it’s a nice callback to their first meeting. 

“Raven,” he says slowly, as if to comprehend the fact that she’s here. “What are you doing here?” 

“I – ” Raven shakes her head. Octavia putting the thought of sex with Bellamy back into her head right before he walks out of the shower half-naked is _not_ a good combination. “I came to – well, to apologize for whatever stupid shit Finn might have said.” 

Bellamy snorts and begins moving again, grabbing his clothes off the edge of his bed. “You don’t have to do that. I’m not dense enough to think he speaks for you or anything.” 

She pauses, watching his hand hover at the top of his towel. “No, I just – you know I don’t care what they think, right? About – I mean – we’re friends. Sort of. Right?” 

“Just friends?” he asks, raising an eyebrow and grinning when she meets his gaze head-on. “Are you going to turn around then?” 

Raven flashes him a smile. “If you want me to.” 

“Touché,” he laughs, though he still turns away from her before he drops the towel. “Listen, you don’t have to worry. I know you and – well, you know me better than Finn does. Or any of them. It’s not a big deal.” 

Raven bites her lip. “You know, Octavia was in here when I came in.” 

He freezes in the middle of buttoning up his jeans. “Was she?” 

“She was,” Raven confirms, and waits for him to turn around after buckling up his belt. 

Bellamy sighs, running a hand through his hair. “What did she tell you?” 

“Well, she seems to be under the impression I’m good at sex.” 

He chokes. “She – I – that is – she _did not_ – I’m going to _kill her_.” 

Raven presses a hand to her mouth to muffle her giggles. “I mean, she’s not wrong.” 

Bellamy stares at her in amazement. “ _Modest_.” 

She laughs and hops off his bed. “So – if we’re all settled on _that_ … I should go work, probably.” 

“Probably,” he agrees, a grin playing on his lips. She chances a look over her shoulder to see him standing there watching her, his hair damp and sticking to his forehead, his chest still delightfully bare, and a look in his eyes like – “Hey, Raven?” 

“Yeah?” she asks, halfway to the doorway, just before he catches her arm in his hand and spins her back towards him, his head coming down in time to meet her lips in a kiss that tastes of peppermint and delight. He smells like lemon shampoo, and his skin is cool and wet and soft as she trails her hands over his chest. He still has really nice abs. 

“We should, uh,” Bellamy murmurs against her lips, forehead pressed against hers as they pause for breath, “we should go on a date. Sometime. You know. Whenever you want.” 

“Okay,” she agrees, sliding her arms up around his shoulders. “Don’t wear a shirt.” 

Bellamy laughs. “All right, Raven,” he agrees, her name warm on his lips right before she smiles at him and steals another kiss. 


End file.
